'As needed' nurses told they are no longer needed

Flagler Hospital on Thursday told about a dozen nurses technically employed "as necessary" that they are no longer needed.

Hospital spokesman Peter Bacon said the move was simply a matter of business and was based on the hospital's patient census.

"I would surmise that these are some disgruntled employees, but these are normal hospital functions," he said. "This year's volume has been pretty far off from past years' volume. It is unfortunate that it's right before Christmas, but that's just part of running a business."

He said the hospital's fourth floor medical, surgical and cardiac unit has 43 beds and 18 patients. However, the hospital is not closing the unit. He said that some of the beds might be changed to obstetrics in February or March.

Although the employees were technically temporary staff, several said they had worked full-time at the hospital for years.

And, they said, they're devastated.

Noemi Nagy is a 38-year-old mother of three who took on PRN status, a Latin phrase that essentially means "as needed."

PRN nurses are called in to cover staff shortages. They forsake benefits for flexibility and a few more dollars an hour.

Nagy has been working at the hospital for two years, usually at 80 to 100 hours every two weeks.

"I live paycheck to paycheck," said Nagy, who also cares for her mother. "In a matter of minutes, my world came crashing down, and it's like, am I going to pay my rent this month or feed my children?

"Today's paycheck was supposed to be something for Christmas," she said. "Pretty much, there is no holiday."

Suzanne Soule, 43, said she walked into work Wednesday evening to find half the unit closed. Later, at home, she had a message to call her boss, and a message from a co-worker saying she was concerned about how she was handling it.

Her boss was unavailable by the time she got the message, but she heard through coworkers that "PRNs would no longer be needed."

"I understand the hospital is a business; they have to do what they have to do," said Soule. "But this is just mean."

She said that every PRN agrees to give at least two weeks notice if they are going to leave. She would have appreciated the same courtesy.

"It just blows my mind that they chose four days before Christmas to do this," she said. "We're all hurt. We're really hurt. Not just financially. We were thrown out like yesterday's trash."

Hospital spokesman Bacon said job instability is part of the job that these nurses have accepted.

"They're PRN nurses. That's what they do," he said. "They come in when they're needed, and they don't come in when they're not needed. It's part of the job description."

But Soule said her job has been steady and full-time for more than three years. Until Thursday, she was on an approved schedule until late January.

"It's heart-breaking because it's a predominately female profession, and a lot of these women are single mothers," said Soule. "The issue is it's heartless, and it's cold to do it four days before Christmas. Our holidays will be filled with nothing but worry and sadness. The timing seems very cruel."

Nagy said that at least there is a need out there for nurses, but she'll be out of work for at least two weeks to a month.

"If I had had notice, I could have used that time to look for a new job," she said. "Now, I'll have all this time with no paycheck. I don't know what I'm going to do."